The Quiet Exhaustion of Tech Hiring

Anyone who’s been through a job search in tech knows the feeling. It’s not quite pain – at least not the physical kind (though that stress ulcer might disagree). It’s more like being trapped in an endless Sunday afternoon at your in-laws, where time seems to stretch like warm taffy and your smile gets a little more forced with each passing hour as you watch life pass you by.

A bit dramatic? Perhaps, but I suspect that you know exactly what I am talking about if you are one of the nearly 5 million tech workers looking to change jobs in 2025. Having just watched my wife go through this process, I can attest that it is maddening, confusing, and degrading.?

The good news is that the tech hiring market is showing signs of recovery in 2025. Companies are hiring again, W2 roles are back in demand, and the macro indicators all point up. But the process? That’s where the soul-crushing tedium lives.

Imagine this: You’re a skilled developer. Maybe you’ve built complex systems that handle millions of requests, or architected solutions that save companies millions. Yet here you are, for the hundredth time, carefully reformatting your resume to pass an ATS system that feels about as sophisticated as a Magic 8-Ball. “Reply hazy, try again” might as well be the automated response you’ll receive in two weeks – if you receive one at all (a big if).

It’s like being stuck in line at the DMV (yes, I’m thinking of you, Brooklyn – Atlantic Center). Each application feels like another trip to the counter, only to be sent to sit somewhere else. Submit resume. Tweak keywords. Complete assessment. Wait. Wonder. Repeat. After the first fifty applications, it’s not even the rejections that wear you down – it’s the silence. The void where human interaction should be. How did we go so wrong??

For companies, it’s a different flavor of the same exhaustion. Imagine sifting through hundreds of resumes, each one starting to blur into the next, knowing that somewhere in this digital stack of hay is the needle you’re looking for. But every minute spent reviewing applications is a minute not spent on actual development work, and the pressure to make the right choice weighs heavy.

The really frustrating part? Everyone wants the same damn thing. Companies want to build great products with talented developers. Developers want to work on interesting problems with good teams. It should be simple. Instead, we’ve built this labyrinth of processes, each turn designed to make our lives easier, but only accomplishing the opposite.

There’s a particular kind of fatigue that sets in. It’s not the satisfying tiredness that comes after solving a complex technical problem or running a 5k. It’s the exhaustion of performing the same ritual over and over, hoping for different results. It’s the kind of tiredness that makes you want to lie down and question every career choice that led you here.

But it doesn’t have to be this way.

The market is changing. Companies are realizing that the traditional hiring process is driving away the very talent they’re trying to attract. They’re looking for alternatives to the endless cycle of job posts and resume screenings. They’re seeking ways to connect directly with developers, to have actual conversations about actual work.

At Gun.io, we see both sides of this struggle every day. We see talented developers burned out from firing applications into the void. We see companies overwhelmed by the flood of applicants while still missing out on great candidates. That’s why we’ve focused on building something different – a way to cut through the tedium and make direct connections between companies and developers.

As we move further into 2025, the companies that thrive will be the ones that recognize this shared exhaustion and work to eliminate it. They’ll be the ones who find ways to make hiring human again, to respect everyone’s time and energy, and to focus on what really matters: building great things with great people.

The market is improving, and the opportunity is there. Now, it’s time to fix the process that’s making everyone want to pack it in and start an Etsy shop.

Also, I mean no shred of offense to Etsy shops. I have great admiration for those who pursue creative endeavors and dare to make their dreams a reality. And, contrary to the above, I do quite enjoy my in-laws’ company.